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STEF News, issue 67, November 3, 1946

Page 1

                 STEFNEWS
____________________________
                  3 Nov 46
____________________________
PHILLY CONFERENCE BIG SUCCESS; SMITH AND LOVEMAN SPEAKERS

   (Madle) After a six year lapse, the first post-war Philadelphia Conference was held by the Philadelphia Science Fiction Society last Sunday, 27 Oct 1946.  About eighty fantasy and science fiction fans and writers attended the meeting in downtown Philadelphia, coming in from New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.  The combined forces of the newly revived Routines SF League in the Eastern Science Fiction Association accounted for nearly half the attendance.
   The Conference got under way at about one o’clock with Milt Rothman making brief introductions of the members of a crowd which represented practically all of eastern fandom except the Strangers Club of the Boston area.  With no time lost on applause or speeches during the introduction, George O. Smith, attending a large fan gathering for the first time, was called upon to entertain with his prepared talk consisting of humorous incidents which cropped up during the time he was connected with proximity fuse research.
   A brief intermission followed, and then the various representatives of fan clubs were requested to present a few words about the organizations.  Rusty asked for and answered questions about the LASFS; Sykora spoke briefly for the QSFL, Sam Moskowitz for the ESFA (presenting to Chairman Milt thirty Philcon Society memberships for QSFL and ESFA members), Rothman for the Fantasy Foundation, Rusty for the National Fantasy Fan Federation, and Rothman for the FAPA and of the PSFS. VAPA members present said “not a word”.
   Guest speaker Samuel Loveman was then called upon to present a talk on H.P. Lovecraft.  This turned out to be the highlight of the afternoon.  Mr. Loveman, who was a personal friend of Lovecraft for over twenty years, spoke eloquently, and at times quoted HPL verbatim in his own decadent style of speech.  One of the facts he pointed out was that HPL lived in constant poverty, and that malnutrition must have been an important factor in his untimely demise.  After Mr. Loveman concluded his talk, he answered numerous questions concerning Lovecraft.
   Next came the fireworks.  Will Sykora introduced a resolution to have the Conference go on record as opposing the publication of the Shaver stories in AMAZING as fact rather than fiction, to set up an investigating committee to check on possible illegality of such publishing and submit their findings to postal authorities, and to circulate a petition supporting the resolution throughout fandom.  Arguments brought up in the discussion concerned the sadistic torture and sex appearing in the stories, the danger in the reading of such stories by young readers to which the magazine is aimed, and the possibility of endangering the continuation of the other science fiction magazines.
   A similar resolution had been passed already at a meeting of the Queens club and copies of AMAZING had been presented to the Society for the Prevention of Vice.  Will Sykora and Tom Gardner earnestly pled for passage of the resolution, but it was hotly contested
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STEFNEWS ____________________________ 3 Nov 46 ____________________________ PHILLY CONFERENCE BIG SUCCESS; SMITH AND LOVEMAN SPEAKERS (Madle) After a six year lapse, the first post-war Philadelphia Conference was held by the Philadelphia Science Fiction Society last Sunday, 27 Oct 1946. About eighty fantasy and science fiction fans and writers attended the meeting in downtown Philadelphia, coming in from New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. The combined forces of the newly revived Routines SF League in the Eastern Science Fiction Association accounted for nearly half the attendance. The Conference got under way at about one o’clock with Milt Rothman making brief introductions of the members of a crowd which represented practically all of eastern fandom except the Strangers Club of the Boston area. With no time lost on applause or speeches during the introduction, George O. Smith, attending a large fan gathering for the first time, was called upon to entertain with his prepared talk consisting of humorous incidents which cropped up during the time he was connected with proximity fuse research. A brief intermission followed, and then the various representatives of fan clubs were requested to present a few words about the organizations. Rusty asked for and answered questions about the LASFS; Sykora spoke briefly for the QSFL, Sam Moskowitz for the ESFA (presenting to Chairman Milt thirty Philcon Society memberships for QSFL and ESFA members), Rothman for the Fantasy Foundation, Rusty for the National Fantasy Fan Federation, and Rothman for the FAPA and of the PSFS. VAPA members present said “not a word”. Guest speaker Samuel Loveman was then called upon to present a talk on H.P. Lovecraft. This turned out to be the highlight of the afternoon. Mr. Loveman, who was a personal friend of Lovecraft for over twenty years, spoke eloquently, and at times quoted HPL verbatim in his own decadent style of speech. One of the facts he pointed out was that HPL lived in constant poverty, and that malnutrition must have been an important factor in his untimely demise. After Mr. Loveman concluded his talk, he answered numerous questions concerning Lovecraft. Next came the fireworks. Will Sykora introduced a resolution to have the Conference go on record as opposing the publication of the Shaver stories in AMAZING as fact rather than fiction, to set up an investigating committee to check on possible illegality of such publishing and submit their findings to postal authorities, and to circulate a petition supporting the resolution throughout fandom. Arguments brought up in the discussion concerned the sadistic torture and sex appearing in the stories, the danger in the reading of such stories by young readers to which the magazine is aimed, and the possibility of endangering the continuation of the other science fiction magazines. A similar resolution had been passed already at a meeting of the Queens club and copies of AMAZING had been presented to the Society for the Prevention of Vice. Will Sykora and Tom Gardner earnestly pled for passage of the resolution, but it was hotly contested (Continued over page, column 1)